This unusual name is a variant of the English status name "Bachelor", which was used to denote a young knight or a novice at arms, from the Middle English and Old French "bacheler". By the 14th Century the word had already been extended to mean a (young) unmarried man, although it is unlikely that many bearers of the surname derive it from the word in that sense. In 1641, William, son of George Backler, was christened at St. Thomas the Apostle in London and in 1808 William Chitty and Elizabeth Backles were married at St. Georges, Hanover Square London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John de Bakahir. which was dated 1196, The Curia Regis Rolls, Devonshire. during the reign of King Richard I, The Lionheart, 1189 - 1299. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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